editorNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Jackie Northam is Foreign Affairs correspondent for NPR news. The veteran journalist has more than two decades of experience covering the world's hot spots and reporting on a broad tapestry of international and foreign policy issues. Based in Washington, D.C., Northam is assigned to the leading stories of the day, traveling regularly overseas to report the news - from Afghanistan and Pakistan, to earthquake-ravaged Haiti. Northam just completed a five year stint as NPR's National Security Correspondent, covering US defense and intelligence policies. She led the network's coverage of the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, traveling regularly to the controversial base to report on conditions there, and on US efforts to prosecute detainees. Northam spent more than a decade as a foreign correspondent. She reported from Beirut during the war between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006, from Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein, and from Saudi Arabia during the first Gulf War. She livedNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Jackie NorthamTue, 26 Sep 2017 10:43:32 +0000Jackie Northamhttp://upr.org
Jackie NorthamTwo Freedom of Information Act requests are raising questions about President Trump's private Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida: Who stayed there, how much they did they pay and who received the profits? In one FOIA action, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, an advocacy group, requested the visitors log for Mar-a-Lago. Such records would potentially show who met with or accompanied the president from January through March this year. What CREW got from the Justice Department was a list of 22 names of people who accompanied Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to Mar-a-Lago in February. The list included Abe's butler and the van driver. "The remaining records that the Secret Service has processed in response to the Mar-a-Lago request contain, reflect, or otherwise relate to the President's schedules," wrote Chad Readler, the acting assistant attorney general, and Joon Kim, the acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, in a letter to CREW . Readler and KimWatchdogs Try To Get Mar-A-Lago Answers, Mostly Turn Up More Questions http://upr.org/post/watchdogs-try-get-mar-lago-answers-mostly-turn-more-questions
91119 as http://upr.orgFri, 15 Sep 2017 21:57:00 +0000Watchdogs Try To Get Mar-A-Lago Answers, Mostly Turn Up More Questions Jackie NorthamThere aren't any case workers manning the phones at the offices of the Human Rights Accountability Global Initiative Foundation on a tree-lined street in Wilmington, Del. In fact, there isn't anyone there at all. The foundation exists on paper as an institution dedicated to making it possible for American families to adopt Russian children, but in the world of international advocacy, things sometimes mean more than they seem. In this case, sanctions. "Whenever anybody on the Russian side says adoption ban, that's really code for the Magnitsky Act," said Seva Gunitsky, a Russian specialist at the University of Toronto. In the 2012 act, Congress punished Russians involved in the killing of a Moscow tax lawyer named Sergei Magnitsky. He had uncovered a massive tax fraud scheme involving Russian officials. The law freezes the assets and bans visas for certain Russians. Russian President Vladimir Putin was infuriated with the sanctions and he retaliated by imposing a ban on RussianBehind Support For 'Adoption,' A Web Of Clandestine Russian Advocateshttp://upr.org/post/behind-support-adoption-web-clandestine-russian-advocates
90801 as http://upr.orgThu, 07 Sep 2017 09:00:00 +0000Behind Support For 'Adoption,' A Web Of Clandestine Russian AdvocatesJackie NorthamThe Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., has become the place to see and be seen in the nation's capital. The opulent setting is a magnet for foreign dignitaries, lobbyists, Republican and conservative groups that want to rub shoulders with administration officials. Now, the Trump Organization's lease for the building is facing a new review by an inspector general. It's not unusual for people of similar political stripes to gravitate toward the same setting. "But we've never had a situation like this where the president's name is there on the front of the building," says Don Fox, a former acting director of the Office of Government Ethics now with the Culver Academies in Indiana. "A building by the way owned by the taxpayers, and the name is up there in big bold letters for anybody to see." The profits — from the drinks to the rooms to the parking — go back to President Trump's organization. This bothers Democratic Rep. Peter DeFazio of Oregon, in large part because the hotelTrump Hotel Lease Under New Review As Lawmakers Keep Up Criticismhttp://upr.org/post/trump-hotel-lease-under-new-review-lawmakers-keep-criticism
90629 as http://upr.orgSat, 02 Sep 2017 11:00:00 +0000Trump Hotel Lease Under New Review As Lawmakers Keep Up CriticismJackie NorthamCopyright 2017 NPR. To see more, visit KELLY MCEVERS, HOST: President Trump's hotel in Washington just blocks from the White House is doing better than even the Trump Organization expected. But the questions continue about whether the president should be allowed to lease a federal building for that hotel. And new questions have emerged about the public's right to know about the hotel's business operations. NPR's Jackie Northam reports. JACKIE NORTHAM, BYLINE: The Trump International Hotel has become the place to see and be seen in the nation's capital. The opulent setting is a magnet for foreign dignitaries, lobbyists, Republicans and conservative groups that want to rub shoulders with administration officials. It's not unusual for people of similar political stripes to gravitate towards the same setting. DON FOX: But we've never had a situation like this where the president's name is there on the front of the building. NORTHAM: That's Don Fox, a former acting director of the Office ofQuestions Linger About President Trump's Washington, D.C., Hotelhttp://upr.org/post/questions-linger-about-president-trumps-washington-dc-hotel
90616 as http://upr.orgFri, 01 Sep 2017 20:32:00 +0000Questions Linger About President Trump's Washington, D.C., HotelJackie NorthamCopyright 2017 NPR. To see more, visit ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: If you've turned on cable TV lately or looked at a national newspaper online, there's a good chance you've seen dueling ads by Saudi Arabia and the tiny nation of Qatar. The ads are part of a 2-month-old feud between the Persian Gulf neighbors. NPR's Jackie Northam has more. JACKIE NORTHAM, BYLINE: Qatar and Saudi Arabia have been lobbying for international support in their ongoing spat since early June. That was when Saudi Arabia and several of its allies cut diplomatic ties with Qatar, alleging, among other things, it funds terrorist organizations. It's a point driven home in this television attack ad launched by a pro-Saudi Arabia group. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: One country in the Gulf region is a threat to global security - Qatar. NORTHAM: The dramatic commercial shows fires burning, the aftermath of a bombing, and militants training. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: AQatar And Saudi Arabia Take Their Feud To The Airwaves, Internethttp://upr.org/post/qatar-and-saudi-arabia-take-their-feud-airwaves-internet
89273 as http://upr.orgMon, 31 Jul 2017 21:23:00 +0000Qatar And Saudi Arabia Take Their Feud To The Airwaves, InternetJackie NorthamIran says it has sentenced an American graduate student to 10 years in prison for spying for U.S. and British intelligence agencies. The Princeton University student was in Iran doing research when he was arrested. Xiyue Wang, 37, is pursuing a Ph.D. in Eurasian history, studying local government in predominantly Muslim regions during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Stephen Kotkin , Wang's advisor at Princeton, says Wang came well-prepared for an extremely ambitious thesis topic. "He had tremendous background, life experiences, linguistic capabilities, and so he entered the program and hit the ground running and developed his interests even more," Kotkin says. The fieldwork stage of Wang's scholarly research took him to Iran about a year ago, Kotkin says. Before he left, Wang called upon established scholars for information. "Everything he did is normal — absolutely everything he did is normal, standard practice for scholars in this region and elsewhere," Kotkin says. WhenAcademic Adviser Of U.S. Student Jailed In Iran: 'Everything He Did Was Normal'http://upr.org/post/academic-adviser-us-student-jailed-iran-everything-he-did-was-normal
88701 as http://upr.orgMon, 17 Jul 2017 21:31:00 +0000Academic Adviser Of U.S. Student Jailed In Iran: 'Everything He Did Was Normal'Jackie NorthamUpdated at 7:16 p.m. ET President Trump has spent much of the past year talking about hackers who stole emails for political reasons. But at Trump Hotels, hackers of a different sort were attacking. Starting last summer, hackers broke into the system that manages the reservation booking service for 14 Trump hotels, stretching from Washington, D.C., to Scotland to Canada to Brazil. But most of the attacks were concentrated in November — the month Trump was elected president. For example, the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., was first hacked on Nov. 7 — the day before the election. Trump Hotels' list of the hacked hotels shows that the problems began last summer at the Trump Soho Hotel in New York City and continued at different locations until early March of this year. The statement said the target was Sabre Hospitality Solutions, which provides reservations services to Trump Hotels. Sabre did not notify Trump Hotels of the breaches until June of this year, the statementTrump Hotels Again The Target Of Hackers Seeking Credit Card Datahttp://upr.org/post/trump-hotels-again-target-hackers-seeking-credit-card-data
88523 as http://upr.orgWed, 12 Jul 2017 23:16:00 +0000Trump Hotels Again The Target Of Hackers Seeking Credit Card DataJackie NorthamCopyright 2017 NPR. To see more, visit MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST: Ivanka Trump's primary role right now may be as an unpaid adviser to her father, but she is still a businesswoman in her own right. And it appears one area she's setting her sights on is China. The first daughter has been applying for new trademarks there. NPR's Jackie Northam is just back from China, where she talked to people about Ivanka Trump and her company. WEIYI QIU: OK, we'll meet at the crossroad... XI ZHANG: ...We can walk there. JACKIE NORTHAM, BYLINE: I caught up with two young women, Weiyi Qiu and Xi Zhang - her friends call her CeeCee - on the leafy campus of Beijing's Tsinghua University. They're both studying global business journalism. They're energetic and stylish. QIU: We'll wait for CeeCee here. NORTHAM: Qiu and Zhang closely follow Asian and Western fashion trends. They've seen and read a lot about Ivanka Trump recently and have definite ideas about her. Twenty-four-year-old Zhang admires Trump for herIvanka Trump Pushes To Expand Her Brand In Chinahttp://upr.org/post/ivanka-trump-pushes-expand-her-brand-china
88448 as http://upr.orgTue, 11 Jul 2017 10:26:00 +0000Ivanka Trump Pushes To Expand Her Brand In ChinaJackie NorthamCopyright 2017 NPR. To see more, visit MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: We're going to start the program today considering the dilemma of the tiny Persian Gulf nation of Qatar. The country is facing a deadline to agree to a series of demands from Saudi Arabia and three other Arab countries. Saudi Arabia gave Qatar until Sunday evening to meet its demands, which include closing the Al-Jazeera network which is headquartered in Qatar and reducing diplomatic relations with Iran. NPR's international affairs correspondent Jackie Northam has been following all of this, and she's with us now in the studios. Jackie, welcome. Thanks for joining us. JACKIE NORTHAM, BYLINE: Thank you very much. MARTIN: So just - can you just bring us up to date for people who have not been following it? What started this whole confrontation? NORTHAM: Well. There's actually been a low-grade feud between Qatar and Saudi Arabia for a number of years now, but it erupted last month when Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the UnitedQatar Faces Saudi Sanctions Deadlinehttp://upr.org/post/qatar-faces-saudi-sanctions-deadline
88118 as http://upr.orgSun, 02 Jul 2017 21:10:00 +0000Qatar Faces Saudi Sanctions DeadlineJackie NorthamThe Trump Organization appears to be making only a limited effort to live up to President Trump's promise to give the U.S. Treasury all foreign profits from his hotels and resorts, according to documents released in recent days. Trump made the promise in mid-January as a way to avoid violating the U.S. Constitution's emoluments clause , which prohibits a president from accepting gifts and payments from foreign governments. The U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has pushed the Trump Organization to say how foreign-sourced profits would be identified, calculated, tracked and reported. What the committee got in response was a copy of a glossy nine-page brochure that lays out the Trump Organization's policy. The pamphlet had been distributed to senior Trump employees worldwide, and it stated that it would be impractical to identify every foreign guest. It says that asking guests whether they're representing a foreign government would "impede upon personal privacy andTrump Said He Would Donate Foreign-Government Profits; Docs Suggest Limited Efforthttp://upr.org/post/trump-said-he-would-donate-foreign-government-profits-docs-suggest-limited-effort
86566 as http://upr.orgThu, 25 May 2017 09:00:00 +0000Trump Said He Would Donate Foreign-Government Profits; Docs Suggest Limited EffortJackie NorthamFor Sale: Spectacular Caribbean waterfront property in French St. Martin. Amenities: Swimming pools, tennis court, full staff. Owner: President of the United States, Donald Trump. This sale is the first known major divestiture of a Trump property since he became president. Trump bought Le Chateau des Palmiers about four years ago; the asking price at the time was $19.7 million. The property has two villas on five acres of land overlooking the deep blue waters of the Caribbean Sea. It can sleep up to 20 people. It's available to rent, starting at $6,000 night. Trump's personal financial disclosures from last May say the rental fees earned between $100,000 and $1 million. Now the property is on the market again. This time, it comes complete with a potential conflict of interest, says Noah Bookbinder, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, which has filed a lawsuit against Trump for violating the U.S. Constitution's emoluments clause. "It seems likeSale Of Trump Property Raises Ethical Questions About Potential Buyer's Motiveshttp://upr.org/post/sale-trump-property-raises-ethical-questions-about-potential-buyers-motives
85934 as http://upr.orgThu, 11 May 2017 09:00:00 +0000Sale Of Trump Property Raises Ethical Questions About Potential Buyer's MotivesJackie NorthamCopyright 2017 NPR. To see more, visit KELLY MCEVERS, HOST: There's a new property listing that just went on the market in the Caribbean. It has incredible views, sleeps 20, even includes a staff. The seller is President Trump. This would be the first sale of a major Trump asset since he became president. NPR's Jackie Northam reports. JACKIE NORTHAM, BYLINE: The exterior views of Le Chateau des Palmiers, President Trump's resort in St. Martin, are impressive - two villas on 5 acres of land overlooking the deep blue waters of the Caribbean, with swimming pools, tennis court and grand staircases. Trump bought the resort about four years ago, when the listing price was just under $20 million. It's been available to rent starting at $6,000 a night. Now the property is on the market again, this time complete with a potential conflict of interest. NOAH BOOKBINDER: It seems like buying a major piece of property for millions of dollars is a particularly strong way to potentially curry favorEthics Questions Raised Over Sale Of Trump Caribbean Resorthttp://upr.org/post/ethics-questions-raised-over-sale-trump-caribbean-resort
85922 as http://upr.orgWed, 10 May 2017 20:35:00 +0000Ethics Questions Raised Over Sale Of Trump Caribbean ResortJackie NorthamFor the second time in less than two weeks, the State Department has hit the "delete" button after complaints that it was promoting Trump family business endeavors. This time, the State Department deleted a retweet of a post by President Trump's daughter, Ivanka Trump. The Office of Global Women's Issues, a small sub-agency at the State Department, used its official Twitter account to retweet an Ivanka Trump tweet touting her new book, Women Who Work: Rewriting the Rules for Success. The office has a mandate to "promote the rights and empowerment of women and girls through U.S. foreign policy." Trump's initial tweet from her personal account said: "Thank you to my beautiful sisters for the support of my #WomenWhoWorkBook!" It showed pictures of sister Tiffany Trump and sister-in-law Lara Trump reading the book. The State Department declined to comment in response to an NPR request. The latest deletion comes not long after the State Department removed an online article featuring Mar-aState Department Again Hits 'Delete' After Allegations Of Trump Promotionhttp://upr.org/post/state-department-again-hits-delete-after-allegations-trump-promotion
85715 as http://upr.orgFri, 05 May 2017 18:37:00 +0000State Department Again Hits 'Delete' After Allegations Of Trump PromotionJackie NorthamOn Inauguration Day, Donald Trump placed his hand on a Bible and promised to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution. At the time, many ethics experts waited to see if Trump would divest himself of his multi-billion dollar business interests. "And he didn't do it," says Zephyr Teachout, an associate law professor at Fordham University. "So immediately upon becoming president we filed a lawsuit to get him to stop violating the Constitution." The lawsuit was filed by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a Washington, D.C.-based government watchdog group. The lawsuit says the president is violating the Emoluments Clause — a provision in the Constitution which prevents government officials from accepting gifts, benefits and the like from foreign leaders or foreign states. Teachout says Trump's businesses are generating profits from foreign governments — especially his hotels and resorts. "Diplomats from foreign governments and their agents are staying in TrumpQuestions Linger About Trump's Foreign Business Ties And The Emoluments Clausehttp://upr.org/post/questions-linger-about-trumps-foreign-business-ties-and-emoluments-clause
85347 as http://upr.orgThu, 27 Apr 2017 09:00:00 +0000Questions Linger About Trump's Foreign Business Ties And The Emoluments ClauseJackie NorthamChina's Foreign Ministry is defending a decision to grant Ivanka Trump new trademark rights for her line of handbags, jewelry and spa services. The three new trademarks were approved April 6 while the president's daughter and her husband, Jared Kushner, sat next to Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife at dinner at President Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, according to The Associated Press . China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman, Lu Kang, said the government handles all trademark applications equally. He suggested some media were "hyping certain gossip to hint at something undisclosed." Peter Riebling, a trademark lawyer in Washington, D.C., disagrees with that statement. He says normally it takes 18 months to two years to have a trademark registration application issued. Riebling looked into all trademark applications filed in China by Ivanka Trump's company. He says about a dozen were filed in the May-June time frame of 2016, before the U.S. presidential election. China Defends Trademark Grants For Ivanka Trump Productshttp://upr.org/post/china-defends-trademark-grants-ivanka-trump-products
85042 as http://upr.orgWed, 19 Apr 2017 21:54:00 +0000China Defends Trademark Grants For Ivanka Trump ProductsJackie NorthamUpdated: 10:26 a.m. ET Two plaintiffs involved in the hotel and restaurant industry have joined a lawsuit alleging President Trump is violating the Constitution, potentially bolstering the effort. The lawsuit centers on whether Trump is breaching the Emoluments Clause — a provision in the Constitution that prevents government officials from accepting gifts, benefits and the like from foreign leaders. The Emoluments Clause is meant to ensure a president can't profit from his office. The lawsuit said Trump is doing just that because his hotels and restaurants do business with foreign governments. The Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, which advocates for improving wages and conditions for restaurant workers, is one of the new plaintiffs to the lawsuit originally filed in late January by the government watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. Saru Jayaraman, co-founder and co-director of ROC United, says her group has 25,000 restaurant workers and moreRestaurant Group Joins Lawsuit Against Trump, Citing Unfair Competitionhttp://upr.org/post/restaurant-group-joins-lawsuit-against-trump-citing-unfair-competition
85002 as http://upr.orgWed, 19 Apr 2017 09:00:00 +0000Restaurant Group Joins Lawsuit Against Trump, Citing Unfair CompetitionJackie NorthamCopyright 2017 NPR. To see more, visit SCOTT SIMON, HOST: One thing certainly can be said about the Trump administration with certainty, and that - it is wealthy - very wealthy. That's according to financial disclosures of 180 administration officials that were released by the White House last night. These disclosures are required when someone starts to work for the administration, and they provide a snapshot of how much people are worth and potential conflicts of interest. NPR's Jackie Northam joins us in our studios. Jackie, thanks for being with us. JACKIE NORTHAM, BYLINE: Good morning, Scott. SIMON: What are some of the things that you noticed? NORTHAM: Well, I looked at the personal finances of a number of President Trump senior advisors, and that includes his daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jerry Kushner. Now, the couple are senior advisers to the president, but they're unpaid employees. Their disclosure form is 54 pages long, and it's just page after page, listing all of theirDisclosures Detail Trump Staff's Assetshttp://upr.org/post/disclosures-detail-trump-staffs-assets
84293 as http://upr.orgSat, 01 Apr 2017 12:04:00 +0000Disclosures Detail Trump Staff's AssetsJackie NorthamThe White House says President Trump has a new special assistant on his staff — his daughter Ivanka. The announcement comes a week after the president's oldest daughter moved into her own office in the West Wing to work on women's issues. Her shift from an informal adviser at the White House to an unpaid government employee is small but important. She was already applying for security clearance, had access to classified information and was meeting with world leaders. But she did not have to abide by ethics rules, which concerned many ethics experts who said it would allow her to skirt some rules and disclosures. In a statement, she says she was voluntarily complying with all ethics rules, but was aware of the concerns about advising her father in a personal capacity. "I will instead serve as an unpaid employee in the White House Office, subject to all of the same rules as other federal employees. Throughout this process I have been working closely and in good faith with the White HouseIvanka Trump To Be An Official White House Employee Covered By Ethics Ruleshttp://upr.org/post/ivanka-trump-be-official-white-house-employee-covered-ethics-rules
84178 as http://upr.orgWed, 29 Mar 2017 21:42:00 +0000Ivanka Trump To Be An Official White House Employee Covered By Ethics RulesJackie NorthamThe Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., has generated plenty of controversy since it opened last fall. But concerns about President Trump's conflicts of interest might not be enough to stop his company from opening a second hotel in the nation's capital. The Washington Post says executives with The Trump Organization are scouring D.C. neighborhoods. They are reportedly planning to open a Scion Hotel, which is a more modest, lower-priced hotel chain than the Trump luxury hotels. The Post says the goal is to convert an existing medium-sized hotel in or near Washington's downtown area. In a statement sent to NPR, Trump Hotels CEO Eric Danziger said the company is "exploring many markets as opportunities for our new Scion hotel brand." He said the company doesn't discuss hotel projects that have not been finalized, but "to date, we have over 30 signed Letters of Intent for the Scion hotel brand." Earlier this year, Danziger revealed plans for dramatically expanding the TrumpTrump Company Reportedly Looking To Add Another Hotel In Washington, D.C.http://upr.org/post/trump-company-reportedly-looking-add-another-hotel-washington-dc
84173 as http://upr.orgWed, 29 Mar 2017 19:28:00 +0000Trump Company Reportedly Looking To Add Another Hotel In Washington, D.C.Jackie NorthamPresident Trump got good news on Thursday from the federal agency that oversees the three-year-old lease on his five-star hotel in Washington, D.C. The General Services Administration said in a letter that the Trump Organization is in "full compliance" with the lease on the luxury hotel that's located just blocks from the White House. Many ethics and contract experts have called upon GSA t o end the lease , noting that the contract language specifically says no "elected official of the Government of the United States ... shall be admitted to any share or part of this Lease, or to any benefit that may arise therefrom[.]" But GSA contracting officer Kevin Terry wrote that reaching "simplistic 'black and white' conclusions regarding the meaning" of the contract's ban on elected officials was not appropriate. He determined the lease is valid because Trump moved his interests in the building to a revocable trust, which is being managed by Trump's oldest sons and other associates. Trump isGSA Says Trump D.C. Hotel Lease Is Valid, Despite Ban On Elected Officials http://upr.org/post/gsa-says-trump-dc-hotel-lease-valid-despite-ban-elected-officials
83964 as http://upr.orgThu, 23 Mar 2017 22:52:00 +0000GSA Says Trump D.C. Hotel Lease Is Valid, Despite Ban On Elected Officials